So we know that Lee's
headquarters was off Mine Road, Jackson's
was over at Moss Neck, Gen. J.E.B. Stuart
and his cavalry were stationed just down
the street (right in front of where the
Volkswagen dealership sits) and Gen.
Longstreet was camped over by where
Spotswood Baptist Church stands.

Many of you probably
recognize this marker for Stuart's camp.
There is also one next to it acknowledging
the start of Sheridan's Raid. Longstreet's
camp marker stands next to the old DMV
parking lot. It should also be added that
Lee, Jackson, and most of the other
higher-ranking officers in the Confederate
Army did treat these grounds and
structures where they stayed with respect.
This is more than I can say for the Union
troops who more often than not abused the
homes and firesides that they occupied and
left a swath of destruction in their
wake.

In fact, one of the most
prized primary sources that I have is
copies of all of the Insurance Claims and
resulting Congressional investigations on
all of the downtown churches. It is
amazing how much of a paper trail exists
and how complicated the U.S. Government
made things even back then. The claims
were finally referred to the court in
1905, by resolution of the United States
Senate under act of Congress approved
March of 1887, known as the 'Tucker Act.'
None of these congregations saw any
financial restitution until after
1905.

That is the story behind
the headquarters markers. I think we can
say that General Lee was a man of strong
character and convictions who maintained a
close-relationship with his staff and a
blue-collar reputation with his men while
camping here. It really seems to validate
the name 'Lee's Hill' in my opinion.

HILTON

Let's step away for a
moment from examining the life of the
soldier to take a peek at the life of the
civilian. This will take us from the rough
living conditions of an army camp, to the
plush home of the Alsop Family. Now this
is the place that I mentioned before that
I have driven past everyday for over a
decade without knowing that it was even
there.

I live down in the
Lancaster Gate subdivision, which is
located on the other side of I-95 in the
Massaponax/Thornburg area. Around halfway
between there and here is a 'Manor Mart'
Flea Market that sits on the side of Route
1, just south of the new shopping area at
Cosner's Corner. It's made up of a bunch
of outbuildings and they seem to have a
lot of stuff for sale when I go past there
on the weekends. Just up and over the hill
from here, behind some trees and at the
rear of this flea market on the left area
sits a beautiful-but-obscured manor called
'Hilton.'

Hilton was an Alsop place.
The Alsops were a powerful land owning
family with roots going all the way back
to the Revolutionary period. Samuel Alsop
Jr, Oakley's builder, was born in
Spotsylvania County in March of 1776. He
was the son of Samuel Alsop, Sr., and
married Dorothea "Dolly" Campbell, in
1802. Alsop began to accumulate land
beginning with an inheritance of acreage
from his grandfather and continued to
acquire large land holdings in
Spotsylvania and Caroline Counties. It is
estimated that he owned over $65,000 of
real estate and $75,000 in personal
property, which included slaves. He was
the "Donald Trump' of the day here in
Fredericksburg.

Another Alsop construction
that you are probably familiar with is the
Spottswood Inn that stands out near
Spotsylvania Court House. He also
supervised the construction of the Old
Berea Church. And at his death in 1858,
Samuel and his wife lived at what today is
known as 'Breezeland' (during the war
better known as 'Fairview'), which still
stands behind the Breezewood shopping
center on Route 208.

Thankfully we have the
accounts of Elizabeth Alsop who wrote
extensively about spending the Christmas
of 1862 there. Lizzie was a teenage girl
during the Civil War and she kept a
detailed diary that showed her contempt
for the Union soldiers. She also struggled
with her own faith later after realizing
that the South's Cause was lost. Like most
high-society gals in 1862, Lizzie was a
big supporter of the war effort. And we
can tell by here writings that she was
very confident about the Confederacy
winning the war. For example, on Sunday
night June 29th 1862 she wrote:

Hurrah for the Southern
Confederacy!!!!! Joy! Joy! Joy!!!!
Glorious news! Mr. Marye has just been
over to tell us the joyful news-viz! To
night Mr. Green Howe Daniel came down from
Mr. James Scott's, about 30 miles distant,
and brought a true copy of telegraphic
dispatches received by Col. Fontaine from
his son in Richmond. First ran as follows
McClellan's Army in retreat, our Army
pursuing already they have gotten so far
that the guns cannot be heard in
Richmond.

According to NPS historian
John Hennessy "Lizzie was just 16 when she
started her diary, and it's remarkable in
many respects. She was a first-rate flirt
and chronicles her flirtations thoroughly
(in fact, I think hers is one of the best
testimonials in existence on 19th Century
courting practices). But she was also
politically and culturally aware and
offers some great commentary on the Union
occupation, family, and
destruction."

Imagine if you will, the
young, impressionable Elizabeth Alsop,
sitting by candlelight in this magnificent
manor, riding high on the South's victory
in the Battle of Fredericksburg, the
nation's icons camped in the area, it's
the holiday season, a celebratory time
that in many ways stopped the war for a
while. On Dec 29th 1862 Lizzie wrote what
brought them from their main estate, which
I believe was called Sunnyside, to Hilton
manor on the hill:

Five weeks ago Father
Mother Nannie, Mr. & Mrs. Allen fled
from Fredericksburg, thought to be in
imminent danger; and took refuge in this
house [Hilton], and here they have been
ever since & are likely to remain for
some time. During the shelling of
Fredericksburg, November 11th 1862, very
few citizens remained in town, not more a
hundred & fifty if so many. Uncle
William & Mrs. Foulke were at our
house, but after the Yankees crossed over
they left. The house was very much
injured, every room rendered not
inhabitable except two. The garden &
yard turned into the common, the furniture
nearly all cut up or very much
injured...

Now to put this in
perspective, here are some photographs of
what our town looked like during the war.
Here you see the ruins. People tend to
forget that although the Confederate
troops were able to defeat the Union at
the stone wall and all along their lines,
the city itself was still shelled and the
occupying Yankees tore the place to
pieces.

As you can see in this
bottom right photograph of a burial
detail, there were dead bodies everywhere.
It's far too easy for us to look back
today, especially in Fredericksburg and
forget the carnage that took place here.
People come from all over the word to tour
our hallowed grounds. And when they get
here, everything is perfect. The grass is
neatly trimmed and the markers are
polished. The freshly painted cannons are
all lined up neatly. Yet they are standing
in the "shadow" of death. Can you imagine
the piles of rotting horses and the
millions of flies that littered the air?

Try to picture the
nightmarish scenes that were witnessed by
the townsfolk following the battle. It's
not at all romantic. So the next time that
you find yourself touring one of these
picturesque places, try to remember that
although our National Battlefields are
beautiful, [ANIMATION: the stonewall now -
to then morph] the war that took place on
them was ugly. I've been a full-time Civil
War buff ever since my parents took me on
a trip to Gettysburg at the age of 7 and
it took me 28 years to realize
that.

For the Alsop family the
harsh realities of war had turned their
world upside down. Thankfully they had a
place like Hilton to escape to. And it was
a pretty fancy 'safe house' if you ask me.
So while their other properties continued
to be either threatened or in need of
repair, Lizzie's family stayed there on
into the next summer and on Friday July
31st in 1863 she recorded the following
passage: Our last
night at Hilton. Happy for the most part,
has been our sojourn here, and with a sad
heart I contemplate the woods, fields, and
the little white house for the last time.
Yet I most assuredly expect to see them
again, but not in the same position as
now.

Lizzie's diary is still
considered to be one of the best
first-person accounts to come out of
Fredericksburg. Her aunt Elizabeth French
also kept a journal. The Alsop's however
were not the only one's to build these
lovely houses near Lee's Hill, there was
also some elegant properties known as
Belvoir, Lansdowne, and Hamilton.